The Grenada National Reparations Committee (GNRC) is profoundly saddened at the death of Reverend Jesse Jackson.
Like members of the GNRC, Rev. Jackson possessed a passion and determination in seeking redress for historical injustices, including chattel slavery, perpetrated against people of African descent.
An ordained Baptist Minister, Jackson died Tuesday, 17 February, in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was 84.
Jackson, who became one of the most prominent civil and human rights leaders of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, was a protégé of the late Rev. Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. In fact, in 1987, Donald L Rheem — a staff writer with The Christian Science Monitor — described Jackson as “one of the most successful Black leaders in American history.”
Jackson utilised various means in his drive for social, economic and political empowerment. He protested on the streets; he formed organisations such as the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition; and twice ran as a Democratic Party candidate for President of the United States of America.
His influence extended beyond the borders of the US, engaging in overseas issues, including negotiations in 1984 with former President Fidel Castro for the release of 22 Americans who were being held in Cuba. He was also an outspoken advocate for the end of the racist apartheid regime in South Africa.
Jackson was the recipient of numerous awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He received it in 2000 from President Bill Clinton.
The Reverend has left an indelible legacy that would only inspire the GNRC, as we continue on our mission of advancing the quest for reparations for people of African descent in Grenada and throughout the Caribbean region.
We demand reparative justice for the countries of Africa and the Caribbean; repairs for past atrocities including enslavement, colonisation and genocide; and repairs that embody respect for the innate right of every nation — big or small, in Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America and elsewhere — to claim and reclaim their sovereignty and freedom and to determine their own paths to economic development and prosperity.
May he rest in eternal peace.
GNRC
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